Time again for our selective picks of the original series of Star Trek. Thanks to my streaming services I can pick and choose which episodes to watch and skip the many, many bad ones. So it’s time to look into one of the most important episodes of the original series with the first appearance of Khan… you just read that as Kirk screaming out didn’t you?

Space Seed is the 22nd episode of the first season of Star Trek. Chekov isn’t there yet. It introduces many elements that other series would later go on to explore thanks to this also being a must watch since it was used to then make the second movie Wrath of Khan. (Fun fact, I saw that movie long before I saw this episode.)  Because of this, as well as the regular cast, we are joined by Ricardo Montalban as the now classic villain Khan.

One detail that is interesting watching this in hind sight, (and I’m not talking about the silly description of what supposedly happened in the 90s according to Star Trek, something that even Strange New Worlds had to explain, and we have all made jokes about) is how it describes the Eugenics Wars of Star Trek lore. Future series would describe Khan as the result of genetic engineering or manipulation, while in this first appearance it’s described entirely as selective breeding. I put this up to later series understanding you can’t get the results shown with Khan by selective breeding. Because of all this, Space Seed gives us important details about the past of the Earth in Star Trek that shows would later use more heavily such as the third world war.

But for all the praise we give this episode for the building blocks it would do later, including the ground work for what is one of the two best Star Trek films (I say two as there’s debate on which is better). The episode itself contains a lot of problems that can make you wince, resulting in it being problematic.

First up, while Khan is described by Marla McGivers, an historian, as being from the Indian subcontinent. Ricardo Montalban is Mexican, and has a notable Mexican accent (and later would be played by the English Benedict Cumberbatch before finally someone thought they should get someone of Indian heritage to play the guy… though I liked Cumberbatch’s Khan, he was the best bit of the movie). And then there’s McGivers herself. Original Star Trek for all its claims about being a show of diversity and how man was now beyond racism… was really misogynistic. And here because McGivers fancied Khan, she betrays the entire crew to him… sure she rescues Kirk later but… yeah.

As for plot issues, well once again I have questions about how easy it is to take over the Enterprise by just breaking into engineering… It’s not the worst time that happens, that’s still when Kirk loses it to Hippies who use the convenient very unguarded take over the entire ship location that’s elsewhere (meaning there are TWO locations you can take over the flag ship of the Federation outside the bridge). At least with Khan you have the excuse of genetically enhanced super humans and a whole ship of them.

Still, you get good performances from the lead 3 characters and Montalban. Throw that on with its historical importance for the franchise and you kind of do need to watch this one. Just, prepare for some…. issues…

Rating: 📺📺📺